


carry on my wayward son

by QueenIsabelle



Series: Zutara Month 2020 [5]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Day 7: Wisdom, F/M, Iroh Notices Things, Iroh's Musings, No relationship is necessarily shown, One Shot, One Shot Collection, Zutara Month, Zutara Month 2020, all of these characters are mentioned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:09:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24169390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenIsabelle/pseuds/QueenIsabelle
Summary: Day 7: WisdomIroh has always been considered a wise man.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar), Mai/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Zutara Month 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1736344
Comments: 2
Kudos: 64





	carry on my wayward son

Iroh had never thought of himself as particularly wise. He was rather dunce-like in the process of courting his wife; he never learned how to change Lu Ten’s diaper; and he was stubborn to a fault. But after the loss of his wife, and then his son, grief had aged him, and he found himself prone to spouting off random phrases that seemed to inspire people.

He had lost count of how many young men had come to him for advice on courting the special person in their life; apparently, having been married made him the most knowledgeable on the subject. Iroh didn’t know how to tell them that the only reason she had married him in the first place was because he was a prince—despite the fact of them falling in love after. He didn’t know how to woo a woman.

And yet, as he continued to grow older, he found himself becoming ensconced in the love lives of those around him. What else did he have to do aside from running his tea shop?

Naturally, the first person that he studied was his nephew. Iroh had taken care of Zuko since he was thirteen, and sometimes, it was hard to see him as the seventeen year old Fire Lord he had recently become. Zuko carried himself with a confidence that he had never had before, and he smiled more, too.

And yet, Zuko continued to date the former governor’s daughter, Mai. There was nothing wrong with the girl, per se. She was polite, if a little cold, and she seemed to care for Zuko. But Iroh could see that the pair were too similar, too unwilling to confide in one another. Despite the heartbreak it caused his nephew, Iroh was relieved when Mai broke it off with him.

After Zuko’s relationship ended, Iroh found himself focused on the relationship between the Avatar and the master waterbender. They had gotten together around the same time that Mai and Zuko had, and Iroh had found them… cute. But it was puppy love. Katara’s love was more protective than loving, and Aang’s love was more infatuation than anything. In normal circumstances, it would have been a typical preteen romance; instead, it dragged on for far too long. If Iroh was relieved when Mai broke up with Zuko, it was nothing compared to when Aang and Katara finally broke up.

So the years passed, and the only real relationship that Iroh knew of was that between Sokka and Suki. They were the best couple that Iroh had seen by far.

And yet, Iroh couldn’t help but notice the electricity between his nephew and the master waterbender, no pun intended. He had seen the spark, the care for each other before the day the war ended. One doesn’t just jump in front of lightning for anyone. But Iroh knew that they were both too young and too damaged to start anything. They had both suffered because of the war; they needed to grow, to experience new things. 

So, Iroh waited for the right time. And waited. And waited. But he wouldn’t give up. He knew true love when he saw it.

**Author's Note:**

> So this will be continued in another one-shot, in an idea that literally came to me as I was writing this one-shot. Sorry it's not super Zutara-y, but the second part sure will be! Keep an eye out for Day 14 (and note that I'm running behind, sorry!) which is Matchmaker Iroh. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! Check out my other Zutara Month one-shots! I'm writing as quick as I can, promise!
> 
> ~Isabelle


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